Education strategy not ‘properly thought through’
The Government’s secondary school education strategy has come in for strong criticism from the influential Education and Skills Select Committee.
Today’s report, the culmination of a two-year inquiry into secondary education, casts doubt on a number of the Government’s flagship policies, suggesting they are based on “unexamined assumptions” and lack procedures to assess cost and effectiveness.
It concludes that policies have “not been properly thought through”.
Government plans for a large expansion of the city academy scheme came in for particular criticism. The largely Labour-dominated committee calls for the £5 billion set aside for building more academies in England to be withheld until the Government can provide more evidence of the scheme’s success.
So far the programme, which was set up to raise standards in failing schools, has produced mixed results with league tables published today demonstrating that exam performance for 14 year-olds is worse now in some academies than before private investors were brought in.
Despite claims by the Department for Education and Skills that the 17 academies in England were “making big strides in a very short space of time”, the select committee accuses the Government of rolling-out schemes without proof of their success.
“The Government should ensure that the current programme of academies is thoroughly evaluated, both in respect of the performance of individual academies and the impact on neighbouring schools, before embarking on a major expansion of an untested model,” the select committee says.
Committee chairman Barry Sheerman said: “Although increased public expenditure on education has been effective in many cases, this should not give the Department a carte blanche to roll out expensive schemes before they have been thoroughly tested.”
“It is important that all pupils benefit from increased spending, not just the privileged few. Safeguards should be put in place to prevent the academies from diverting funds away from the schools that need help most.”
In an interview with BBC, Mr Sheerman also added that private investors have too much control over the running of the school.
“The private investor, or the company, or the individual, puts £2 million in and gets to decide things in that school, in that academy, for the rest of time,” Mr Sheerman, told BBC One’s Breakfast show. “I have had big commercial banks tell me tell me there’s no better business. You put £2 million in, the government puts £28 million in and you call the shots.
“I think that’s a bit over-generous.”
The admissions policy also comes in for sharp criticism, with MPs accusing the Government of failing to recognise the scale of the problem and suggesting that plans to move towards more specialist schools will only exacerbate the problem.
It warns that despite the Government’s rhetoric on choice, schools are increasingly choosing pupils rather than the other way around.
Mr Sheerman added: “Our report shows that despite the Department’s belief in choice, it is failing to help parents decide which school their child attends.”
“Clear, fair and open arrangements to determine the order in which parental preferences will be met are not always in place. The Government needs to make sure all schools implement best practice.”
He also questioned the twin drive to give schools more independence, but ask them to work together in partnership. Though the idea of schools working together to share expertise and disruptive pupils may sound attractive, the committee suggests that the DFES has “seriously underestimated” the challenges.
It warns: “Partnerships may not appear equally attractive to all schools and it is hard to see what pressures will be brought to bear in order to persuade all schools of the value of collaboration.”
